The therapeutic effect of different cumin essential oil fractions against gastric ulcer in rats

Abstract Cumin, a popular spice, is widely used to treat stomach ailments in Central Asia and Xinjiang, China. Cumin essential oil has been found to effectively treat gastric ulcers, but its pharmacodynamic basis remains unclear. In this study, cumin essential oil was directly separated using column chromatography, and its components were identified through multi‐dimensional gas chromatography‐mass spectrometry. Finally, the cumin essential oil was fractionated into E1, E2, and E3. The effects of these fractions on gastric ulcers were studied using an anhydrous ethanol‐induced rat model. The results indicated that the three fractions decreased ulcer index, gastric fluid pH, and pepsin activity to different extents. They lowered the levels of prostaglandin E2, gastrin, and epidermal growth factor in rat serum. According to an analysis of the above indices, E3 fraction had the best anti‐ulcer effect. The detection results of the oxidative stress and inflammatory factors showed that all three fractions relieved the ethanol‐induced oxidative stress and reduced the release of inflammatory factors to varying degrees. The E3 fraction played the most significant role. The E3 fraction was selected to explore the relevant mechanism, and the results showed that E3 fraction significantly prevented the cleaved caspase‐3 and Bax protein levels that were ethanol‐induced and resisted apoptosis induced by ethanol injury. The western blot results for detecting the NF‐κB‐related pathway protein showed that E3 fraction significantly inhibited the activation of p‐p65, p‐IKKβ, and p‐IκBα. The study found that the E3 fraction of cumin essential oil had the most effective anti‐ulcer effect by inhibiting NF‐κB activation and apoptosis, thus reducing inflammation.